Air Agitated Vacuum Cleaner

ABSTRACT

A vacuum cleaner is improved with blower for agitating particulate matter by means of directed air pressure. The air agitation system replaces or augments the beater bar arrangement in traditional household vacuum cleaners. The blower is combined with a vacuum cleaner to increase cleaning effectiveness. The blower pushes dirt and debris into the vacuum cleaner air duct, while the vacuum produced by the vacuum cleaner pulls dirt and debris into the vacuum cleaner air duct. The combination of pushing and pulling increases the magnitude of the forces acting on the dirt and debris and enables heavier debris like sand to be easily abstracted from the floor.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of vacuum cleaners as used to clean a household carpet or floor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A vacuum cleaner is a device that uses an air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dust, dirt and debris, usually from floors. The dirt is collected by either a dust-bag or container for later disposal. A vacuum's suction is caused by a difference in air pressure. A vacuum air pump reduces the pressure inside the machine. Atmospheric pressure then pushes the air through the carpet and into the nozzle, and so the dust is literally pushed into the bag.

Various types of vacuum cleaners are upright, canister, built-in, robotic, hand-held, etc. Each of these types of vacuum cleaners uses an air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dust, dirt and debris. The power source for the vacuum air pump is typically an electric motor.

The improvement is the incorporation of a blower air pump to the vacuum cleaner. The blower air pump is powered by an electric motor. The air from the blower dislodges dirt and debris from the carpet and pushes the dirt or debris toward the input opening of the vacuum air duct. The combination of the blower and vacuum air pumps increases the effectiveness of the vacuum cleaner.

Many prior art vacuum cleaners utilize a beater bar to agitate the debris in a carpet to work loose the debris so that it can be collected. The beater bar typically contains bristles that contact the carpet or floor, dislodging debris by means of physical contact. The directed air blower provides an improved method of agitation that allows more debris to be extracted from the carpet without causing wear on the carpet from physical contact.

SUMMARY OF PRESENT INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to improve the cleaning capacity of a vacuum cleaner.

The vacuum cleaner of the present invention utilizes the suction components of a prior art vacuum cleaner and adds an air pump to create positive air pressure that is used to dislodge debris from the carpet or floor surface and direct debris to the suction opening.

There are several benefits realized by using air pressure to provide air agitation for a vacuum cleaner. First, air agitation can eliminate the typical beater bar, which can wear out carpet fibers over time. Second, the action produced by the agitation dislodges debris settled all the way down to the carpet backing, much further down than traditional vacuum cleaners. Third, the agitation produces an optimally efficient, better-cleaning appliance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1 and 1A are a side view and a perspective view, respectively, of an upright vacuum cleaner that incorporates the concepts of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the vacuum cleaner showing the internal flow of the air throughout the vacuum.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the vacuum cleaner showing the blower nozzle.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the vacuum cleaner showing the blower nozzle encircling the intake opening of the vacuum.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the vacuum cleaner showing the internal flow of the air throughout the vacuum where the air is being recycled from the existing pump system.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the upright vacuum cleaner in which the blower air pump is incorporated into the head assembly.

FIG. 7 is a side view of a vacuum attachment showing the blower and vacuum air flow.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The embodiment is an improvement that increases the effectiveness of a vacuum cleaner 10. An upright vacuum cleaner is shown in FIG. 1. An electric motor 20 and blower air pump 22 are incorporated in the head assembly 12. The blower air pump 22 is driven by a motor 20.

A side view of the internal flow of the air through the vacuum cleaner 10 is shown in FIG. 2. Air flows into the blower air pump 22 through the air intake opening 42. The blower air pump 22 is driven by a motor 20. The blower air pump 22 pushes the air into the blower air duct 30. The air travels through the blower air duct 30 to the floor surface 14 and pushes the dirt and debris into the vacuum intake opening 28. Next the air with dirt and debris is pulled into the vacuum air duct 32 by the suction produced by the vacuum air pump 24, and the air with the dirt and debris flows in the vacuum air pump 24. The dirty air flows into the dirt receiving receptacle 26. The vacuum air pump 24 is driven by a motor 20. The head assembly 12 comprises structural panels 48 and rolls across the floor by the wheels 36.

FIG. 3 shows the improvement of the blower nozzle 38. The blower nozzle 38 directs the air flow to improve effectiveness by moving the dirt and debris from the floor surface 14.

FIG. 4 shows that the blower nozzle 38 can completely encircle the vacuum air opening 28.

FIG. 5 shows that the air for the blower can be recycled through the vacuum cleaner 10. The blower air can be acquired from the air vented from the dirt-receiving receptacle 26 or from the attachment to the suction-creating motor/pump.

The blower air pump 22 can replace the rotating brush that is commonly used in upright vacuum cleaners. Removing the rotating brush can reduce the wear on the carpet surface. FIG. 6 shows the vents 34 to the blower air pump. The blower air pump 22 can be powered directly by an electric motor or indirectly by sharing the electric motor that drives the vacuum air pump via a belt as has been used in prior art to drive the rotating brush.

FIG. 7 shows that the air blower is incorporated into vacuum cleaner accessory attachments or the head portion of a canister vacuum.

The foregoing disclosure and showings made in the drawings are merely illustrative of the principles of this invention and are not to be interpreted in a limiting sense. 

1. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a. A vacuum air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dirt and debris, usually from floors; b. A blower air pump to create an increase in pressure to blow dirt and debris into the vacuum cleaner;
 2. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, which include these applications: a. an upright vacuum cleaner; b. a canister type of vacuum cleaner; c. a hand-held type of vacuum cleaner.
 3. The blower air pump of claim 1, wherein the power is supplied by an electric motor.
 4. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein a nozzle is used to direct the air flow of the blower.
 5. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the air pressure and/or air flow from the blower is pulsating and/or programmable.
 6. The nozzle of claim 4, wherein the nozzle encircles the vacuum cleaner intake opening.
 7. The blower air pump and vacuum air pump of claim 1, wherein are powered by the same electric motor as the vacuum.
 8. The blower air is incorporated into vacuum cleaner accessory attachments.
 9. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the nozzles for the air blower are adjustable.
 10. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, where the agitation of the debris is created by means of air pressure.
 11. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the air pressure is provided by a separate motor/compressor.
 12. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the air pressure is provided by the exhaust from the main suction motor. 